Weekly expositor. (Brockway Centre, Mich.) 1882-1894, 1887-04-28

| ooitiy ihll lue evening snuuOW5,
Or the steps OF parting day"
A great silence reigned over tina
beautiful room, the marble Psych e
seems TO have fallen asleep, the rare
exotics give out sweet, subtitle odor,
the scented wafer of the little fountain
has ceased to ripple, 1t was as though
the silence of the cleaning was too
sweet to be broken.
! Lori Stair. who was busily engaged
in collecting material for the life Of
, Mozart, had gone to the library with
orders that he was not to be disturbed
about anything Lady Perth had taken
up q book, and seemed to have fallen
asleep over 1t, but If the truth were
known her ladyship could see perfectly
well, and was very wide awake, indee d.
| Lady Stair wore an evening dress Of
! white silk; crimso n passion-flower
nestled in her white brea st, and another
shone in the coils OF her golden hair.
She looked lovely as q dream, and the
young soldier never tired Of looking at
her.
| Lady Perth saw IL all; the gathering
! passion in his eyes, the exquisite ten
derness on her beautiful face; and laugh
ed to herself "a she thought how ii must
all end.
''Sing to me, Lady Stair" aid the
! Young Captain.
! H. had been watching the fair beauty
of her face in the quiet cleaning until
1t had dazcd him.
Il wonder" he said to himself, "why
Heaven has made women so fair?"
He was not the frs man by any
means who had asked themselv that
question in utter bewilderment of
spirit.
'Sing TO me, will you? Lord Stair
says you have the finest contralto
voice in England; why do you never
sing?"
/ Lady Perth does not like music" she
replied. with careless glance at the
carefully arrayed figure. "rhe first
time | sung sac said it made her head
ache; have never sung SINCE"
You are very amiable," laughed
Captain Este. II am afraid that
should have sung much oftener for that.
Do sing to me; this is the very night
for music"
Il will with pleasure" said Lady
Stair.
She needed no light, and no notes;
the music seemed to trickle from her
fingers. Who knows Of what she had
ing. Strange to saw, the song she
chose was called. "What might have
BEEN"
There rose in the silence of the twi-
light voice so sweet, so rich, so clear,
thit il was almost unearthly in its
beauty; a voice that went straight TO
the young soldiers heart, and took
even ths cO'or fro his face; each word
feel distinct and clear, and seemed to
die away over the flowers. He never
forgot the words. aud they were beauti-
full enough to remember.
at might have been All full Of deep regret;
We murnur thus Ger days long past and He'd.
Ii might have bern-vain idle words, and yet
BY mortal lips no sadder can be said
at might have been and yet IL is no more
The 4 cam Of life that opened out so fair
When skies once c!oudless slowly shaded Ger.
And hopes bright future melted into air.
at might have been, perchance ourselves let slip
The fatal word that brought us all the i'll;
The briming :up just lifted to our lips
Shattered to earth our hand no more can I'LL.
cit might have been, but for that cruel word
That wrought such anguish past all loves repair;
II might have been, IL oaly We nat hctrl
The warning voice to save us from despair.
at might have been--it might have been. In
The tortured heart may struggle to get free;
The ron 'n5yer' brin IS not hllf sucl pain
AS that which might have been, bat may not
And Lady Perth listened to the song
listened to the faint whisper In which
the beautiful voice died-listened to the
sigh that came when the song was
ended.
"A golden chance" she said to her
oh ha xuif nj
less step; let them make the best of
: it,"
| They did not notice her disappear
ance. Lady Perth did not exist in that
moment for them. When Lady Stair
! left the piano, and went back to her
place, she saw tears standing in the
young soldiers eyes.
II shall think of those words when |
am far away" he said; what might
have BEEN "They told a great deal,
Marguerite. What might have been
II either you or | could have ordered
our own lives
| She looked up at the stars that were
peeping out in golden splendor. There
was far-off, dreamy expression in her
| eyes.
"What might have been?" she repeat
ed, in low sweet voice. II do not see
how anything cou Id have been differ
ent with me. | should imagine all my
life was planned and mapped out ready
for me. | seem to have done nothing
myself. / did the only thing 1t seemed
possible for Inc to do"
''If you could order your own life over
again." he said, "would you make 1t
differently"
She raised her eyes to his face; they
we re as innocent as the eyes of dream
ing child.
"Yes, should just make little differ
ence," she said. ~ should like to spend
it W it'll Sunbeam and you"
"You would like to be with me always.
Marguerite?"
EYES," she replied, with innocent
gaiety, "always, and with Sunbeam
too"
"Will you tell me why?" he said, and
there was ring of infinite tenderness
in his voice.
II have hundred reasons" she re-
piled. Il like you; you are kind to me;
you think OF me always; you believe in
me; you understand me; my character
seems to blend well with yours; you
laugh cheerily, and your voice has
hearty, genial ring that warns my
heart when hear it,"
"Those are all good reasons" he says,
gravely. ''Is there no other?"
II could find no more," she says; "I
am afraid another reason Is, that you
dislike Lady Perth, and am sure another
Is, that you love Sunbeam"
II am sure do that" said the young
officer, quickly. ais there no other